Dead Heroism
by SinningBySilence
Summary: After an incident during the trip back from Neverland, a shaken Regina separates herself from the others to be alone. However, a certain pirate isn't about to let her shut herself away.


_**I wasn't sure that I'd have the heart to post this. I've kinda jumped ship here recently. But since this has been on my computer for weeks untouched, it seemed like a good idea to go ahead and finish it. At least those who are still loyal to HQ will have something. =)**_

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Flashes. That's what Regina kept seeing as she dragged herself up the walkway to her home. She didn't even stop to note that it still looked the same as it did when she left three months ago. She was too busy thinking about the look on the pirate's face, the fear that had overtaken her as she watched Pan's knife pierced him. The blood …

Stupid, _stupid_ man—didn't know keep his mouth shut to save his own life.

With a deep sigh and shaking hands she rummaged for her keys in her pocket to unlock the front door. Shutting it behind her, the former Queen kicked off her boots and shed her coat unceremoniously on the floor of the foyer. Slowly and aimlessly, she walked over to the stairs, noting the dust that covered the banister.

For a moment, she only stood there. Her gaze wandered around the house, trying to take in the fact that she was home again. Finally.

Only it didn't feel like home.

Exhaustion overtook her then, and she had to sit. A few small tears rolled down her cheeks as she slid down to sit on the bottom step of the staircase, her legs giving way as she did so.

As Regina sat there, she thought of Henry. He was safe, of course. Emma, Neal, and the two idiots—_no_, _Snow and David_, she corrected in her mind—had taken him to Granny's to celebrate their return. They had invited her, but she'd declined, promising to see him tomorrow. She'd left with a hug and a request to spend the weekend with her.

At least she could look forward to that.

And then there was Killian. She scoffed and shook her head. If she had it in her right mind, she could strangle him. Or maybe shove his hook up his ass to see if it might help him get his head out of it.

_Narcissistic, stupid_—

"You know, you really shouldn't leave doors unlocked when you don't feel like being disturbed, love."

Regina, startled and irritated, looked around to face her intruder. He walked slowly to the edge of the staircase, leaning against the lowest point of the railing. She glared up at him. His usually sparkling blue eyes seemed to have dulled to a cool gray, and she could swear lines had begun to form on his pale face. He looked like hell. If she wasn't so pissed at him, she would be urging him to get some rest.

Instead, she was fuming.

"Well, maybe _you_ shouldn't barge into other peoples' houses when you know you're only disturbing them," she seethed.

"Regina …"

"No!" she stood up suddenly to stand face-to-face with him. She rounded on him and began walking him backwards, delivering sharp jabs to his chest to emphasize each word. "What you did was _idiotic_—"

"Look, I'm sorry, I just—"

"_Arrogant_—"

"Regina, please—"

"And _selfish_!" she finished, still fuming, chest heaving. "Do you have _any_ idea how scared I was?"

"If you'll let me explain—"

"_Do_ you?!"

"He tried to _kill _you!" Killian's voice grew louder while he moved ever closer to her, earning a rejecting swat when he reached up to touch her arm. "What else did you expect me to do?"

They were in each others faces now, and she was livid. "How about _not_ go after him trying to get yourself killed instead!" she spat, giving him one more shove, "We already had him scurrying off. You're lucky Gold was there to heal your wound with magic, otherwise I would have taken your hide and tossed you overboard mys—"

"You honestly think," he cut her off with a quick grasp of her wrist, his voice desperate and pained as he spoke, "after what he said to you and after threatening you, that I was going to let the bastard get away with it?"

"Why the hell not?" her voice cracked as a few angry tears began to fall again. "It's not as if anyone else seemed to care."

"Well, _I_ do. And I wasn't about to leave that godforsaken world, knowing what Pan put you through, without giving him a friendly reminder that I'll _kill_ him if he dares show his face anywhere again."

Regina shook her head and yanked herself out of his grip. "I don't need you watching out for me."

She could feel the Captain's eyes on her as she turned and crossed over to the dining room archway, keeping her back to him as she leaned against the frame. Her arms folded across her chest, and she took a deep breath while she wiped her tears and collected her thoughts.

"I especially don't need you risking your life at my expense," she continued, her voice low and hoarse. "Besides, why would you, of all people, spare me a second thought anyway?"

The room was silent then, but she knew he was still standing behind her. A small, familiar chuckle sounded from the pirate.

"What?" she snapped, whipping back around to look at him.

"Now, I know you can't be _that_ thick, love," he replied, amused.

Her brown eyes narrowed. "And what's that supposed to mean?"

Killian inched closer to her, growing bolder in his movements. As he closed in on her, Regina didn't move away. Instead she stood up straighter to come as close to his height as her small framed allowed her to.

"Don't tell me you don't see it," he continued, standing only a foot from her. "Or maybe you do but you're pretending not to."

She gaped at him, her cheeks growing red at his insinuation. "I assure you I have no idea what you're talking about."

He was so close now, his face once again only inches from hers. His hot breath caressed her skin as he said, "I think you do."

She swallowed as memories of Neverland—of his ship, of just the two of them, below deck in his quarters—came back to her. She could still feel the chill of the night against warm, ignited flesh; still feel the light stubble of his beard in contrast to his soft lips as they'd traveled across the smooth skin of her neck and down her body …

_No_, she snapped out of her thoughts. She refused to let him use that against her. He wasn't getting out of this that easily.

"We both agreed that night was a mistake," she said quietly, coolly.

He raised his eyebrows at her. "Was it?"

"Don't pretend you suddenly care about me."

"What if I'm not pretending?"

"Of course, you are. Don't be ridiculous."

Hook gave another chuckle and shook his head, the sparkle returning back to his eyes. "You know, I've met many women—_had _many women—in my life, but none of them were quite as stubborn as you."

She arched a brow at him and leaned further into the archway at his proximity. "Never thought stubborn was a quality you would even want."

He rested his hooked arm on her waist. "Oh, you'd be surprised, my dear."

"Emma and her parents won't trust us."

He shrugged and leaned in closer. "They'll learn to deal with it."

"I can only break you," her voice came in a whisper and her pulse began to race.

"I've been broken." His lips all but touched hers.

"You'll break _me_." Her control began to quickly slip away.

"No more than you already are."

Her breath hitched as their bodies pressed together, and she knew in that instant that there was no escaping. He had her.

"I'm out of excuses."

The moment his lips pressed against hers, Regina could feel electricity course through her entire body. Each of her senses went on overdrive, and everything else around her disappeared. Her hands traveled up Killian's chest until her arms looped around his neck. Meanwhile, he brought his good hand to her cheek, causing her to further melt at the soft caress of his thumb across her delicate skin.

She moaned into the kiss as he tugged her closer to him. It wasn't rushed like she had expected, but it was just as heated as the first time he'd kissed her weeks ago. The difference this time was the sincerity, the emotion fueling the fire.

That first time had been no more than a romp in the sheets. But this? This was more, and Regina would be lying to herself if she said this ridiculous oaf of a pirate hadn't wormed his way into her heart over the last three months. In fact, she could swear the only other man who had ever made her feel this way, made her care this much, was Daniel.

The couple broke apart only when the need for air overwhelmed them.

Regina stared wide-eyed and breathlessly at her lover. Killian's look mirrored hers—a mix of delighted wonder and intrigue. Their arms were still wrapped around each other as they stood taking it all in.

"Why was I mad at you, again?" the words came tumbling from her mouth in a puff of air.

A genuine, heartfelt laugh escaped the Captain then. "If I recall, you were yelling at me for making a complete arse of myself."

"Oh. Right. I was, wasn't I?" she said dumbly, trying to regain her thought process. What was it about this man that suddenly turned her into mush?

She shook her head quickly then and refocused. He may have managed to steal her heart, but there was still the matter of his little act of heroics earlier. When Hook leaned in to kiss her again, she stopped him.

"No, wait," she murmured, pressing a finger to his lips then looking him directly in the eye. Her voice grew more confident. "If you _ever_ pull a stunt like that and scare me again, I promise I will follow you to your grave and make your afterlife a living hell. Got it?"

For a moment, he stood there open-mouthed, silent, staring at her.

With a deep breath he nodded. "Duly noted."

"Good."

A dazzling, satisfied smile spread across her face then. And for a moment, the strangest sense of peace filled the air between the two. The feeling wouldn't last forever, Regina knew that; but for a little while at least, she could relish in it.

"So, what now?" Hook asked, breaking Regina's reverie.

She shrugged. "We figure things out as we go along, I suppose. It's not going to be easy."

"Never was."

Regina chewed on her lip. "I'm terrified," she admitted.

"That makes two of us, my dear. But we'll never move on with our lives if we keep letting our fears get in the way of our happiness."

She nodded. "A fresh start, then. Together?"

"Together."

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_**Thoughts? Comments? Feel free to send me your thoughts.**_


End file.
